In the prior art, there are many mittens, and/or glove-type, hand coverings available to protect the wearers' hands from adverse conditions. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,698,851; 4,653,121; 3,885,249; 2,089,086; 3,203,005; and 4,727,675 describe hand coverings for use in various activities ranging from various work activities to skiing, fishing or other recreational activities.
For protection of the hands while hunting, U.S. Pat. No. 4,754,498 (to Stinemates) describes an enclosure that is intended for use with a shotgun or rifle. The body is a bifurcated unit made up of a pair of angularly related sleeves. The sleeves meet in the area of the trigger, enclosing the trigger, for access to the shooter's hand and fingers to the trigger area.
A problem with this prior art hand covering protection is that it may interfere with activities undertaken while wearing the hand covering. A specific problem for hunters active in cold weather is that such hand protection, either in glove or mitten form, may interfere with operating the safety mechanism and firing a gun. Although the Stinemates patent and the other prior art referred to above represent advances in the art of protection of hands from cold weather while undertaking various activities, there are several specific needs of hunters which have remained unaddressed.
A first, and very important, need, concerning safety, is that a user must be able to visually observe the trigger, cocking and safety mechanisms of the weapon being used. A second need is that it is crucial that the firearm user's line of sight along the top of the weapon and to the target remain unimpaired. Another need, particularly while engaged in hunting or skeet-type target shooting, is that it is important that the user be able to react to the presence of a target and, while protected from cold weather, still be able to quickly grasp and pull the trigger of the weapon. Additionally, it is important that the person using a firearm be able to set the weapon down with a minimum of inconvenience, still having the hands protected from cold.